Hydraulic transmission.



W. L. ROUNDS.

HYDRAULIC TRANSMISSION. APPLICATION FJLED MAR. 9. 19H.

LEWAGEQ Patented Mar. 5, 1918 2 SHEETS-SHEET I.

ATTORNEYS w. L. mumps, HYDRAULIC TRANSMISSION.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 9, I917- Patented Mar. 5, 1918 2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

/4 l/VVEA/TOI? WL/Zawzdw E L 8 w w W ATTORNEYS WILB'UB LLOYD ROUNDS, OF REHSSELAER, NEW YORK.

HYDRAULIC TRANSMISSION.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Mar. 5, 1918.

Application filed March 9, 1917. Serial No. 153,597.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WILBUR L. ROUNDS, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Rensselaer in the county of Rensselaer and State of New York, have invented a new and Improved Hydraulic Transmission, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

This invention relates to hydraulic transmission of that type disclosed in the application for United States Letters Patent Serial No. 82,109, filed March 4:, 1916, in which the driving element is in the form of a paddle wheel revolving within a casing which is the driven element and which has on its internal peripheral surface, vanes against which the hydraulic medium set in motion by the paddle wheel operates to cause the casing to be driven.

lhe invention has for its general objects to improve the construction and o eration of transmission of the character re erred to so that it is adaptable for automobile or other work requiring a varying amount of power and varying speeds, and which enables the power to be easily thrown on or ofi by, the paddles or impeller blades being adj ustable to different angles; that is to say, by presenting the flat faces directly to the hydraulic medium or their edges thereto.

11 more specific object of the invention is the provision of a novel form of impeller which is provided with a plurality of spaced blades arranged in groups, with the blades of each group being operatively connected together, and the groups bein connected with an adjusting means locate outside the clutch, whereby all the blades can be adjusted to have their maximum effect on the hydraulic medium or no effect.

With such objects in view, and others which will appear as the description proceeds, the invention comprises various novel features of construction and arrangement of parts which will be set forth with particularity in the following description and claims appended hereto.

In the accompanying drawings, which illustrate one embodiment of the invention and wherein similar characters of refs ence indicate corresponding parts in all the views,

Figure 1 is a sectional view taken parallel with the axis of rotation and with ortion of the casing in elevation, the sectlon being taken on the line 1-1, Fig. 2;

Fig. 2 is a transverse section on the line 2-2, Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary sectional View showing one group of the blades adjusted to zero position; and

Fig. 4: is a detail view of the vanes to show the action of the fluid thereon.

Referring to the drawings, A designates the driving element of the transmission and B the driven element which are connected respectively with the driving and driven shafts 1 and 2. in the form of a casing having pressed-out heads 1 and 2 and a cylindrical wall 3 which is integral with the head 1', and to which the peripheral portion of the head 2 is fastened with a lapped joint at 4. Secured to the heads are bearing hubs 5 and 6 for the driving shaft 1, and on the outside of the head 1 is fastened by means of the flange 7 the driven shaft 2. On the inner surface of the circumferential wall 3 are sets of vanes 8, 9 and 10, the latter being disposed at opposite sides of the central set of vanes 8, the sets of vanes 9 and 10 being opposite each other and in staggered relation to the vanes 8.

The impeller element A comprises a pair of spaced disks 11 and 12, between which are pivoted the paddles or blades 13, the latter having pivots 1 1 journaled in openings 15 in the disks. Each blade 13 has a crank arm 16 at one end and lyin between the disks. The blades 13 are divided into four groups of three each when twelve blades are employed, as shown in Fig. 2, and the cranks 16 of the blades of each group are united with a common connector 17, the cranks of each group of blades being substantially parallel and about forty-five degrees to the central blade of the group when the blades are in radial position as shown in Fig. 1. Associated with each connector 17 is a shaft 18 having its ends 19 journaled in the disks 11 and 12, and this shaft is connected by a crank 20 and pin 21 with the associated connector 17, so that by the rocking of the shaft the connector will be shifted from the position shown in Fig. 2 to that shown in Fig. 3, or vice versa, whereby the blades will be adjusted from maximum to minimum driving effect.

The blade adjusting shafts 18 are adapted to be actuated by means outside the transmission, and for this purpose a collar 22 is axially slidable on the driven shaft 2, the

The driven element B is collar being rotatable with the shaft by means of a key 23 which passes through a longitudinally extending slot 24L in the driven shaft and which is connected with the collar 22. The key 23 also passes throu h a pin 25 which is slidable in the bore 26 of the driven shaft, and this pin is arranged in end to end relation with a pin 27 slidable in the bore 28 of the driving shaft. Passing transversely through the pin is a key 28 disposed in the longitudinal slots 29 and 30 of the driving shaft 1, and the hub 31 of the impeller A. burrounding the hub 31 is a spider 32 which has its hub provided with an annular groove 33 into which the ends of the key 23 engage, whereby the movement of the key back and forth will laterally shift the spider 32. This spider 32 is operatively connected with the shafts 18 so as to turn the latter as the spider moves laterally. For this purpose the outer ends of the arms of the spider have rigidly clamped thereto by means of clips 3% the nuts 35, and engage helical threads 36 on the shafts 18. By this means the lateral movement of the nuts with the spider turns the shafts 18 in one direction or the other for adjusting the pitch of the blades 13. The adjusting collar 22 is provided with a peripheral groove 37 into which a bifurcated lever (not shown) may be engaged so that the operator can control the clutch. A, spring 38 returns the spider to normal position.

The hydraulic medium, such as castor oil or the like, is supplied to the transmission in such volume that when the transmission is operated the oil will form an annular belt around the interior of the casing, and of such radial depth as to cover the impeller blades 13, as well as the blades 8, 9 and 10 on the driven element. When the blades 13 are in the position shown in Fig. 2 they have their maximum efiect on the hydraulic medium, setting the same in motion, which in turn drags the driven element around with the impeller. When the blades are adjusted to the position shown in Fig. 3 they cut through the hydraulic medium without caus ing the latter to produce any dragging efl'ect on the driven element of the transmission, so that there will be no transmission of power through the latter.

In use, the blades will. occupy either the position shown in Fig. 2 or that shown in Fig; 3, but no intermediate position, but nevertheless the speed ratio will automatically change according to the load. When the transmission is pulling only a light load the driven element will run practically in step or synchronously with the driving element, but as the load is increased, the driven ele ment lags more and more behind the driving element, but the pull is increased owing to the greater reaction of the hydraulic medium against the blades 8, 9 and 10.. When.

narrates this takes place the hydraulic medium is forced to take zigzag courses through the blades 8, 9 and 10, as indicated by the arrows speed at which the engine is being I 1 From the foregoing description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, the advantages of the construction and method of operation will be readily understood by those skilled in the art to which the invention. appertains', and while T have described the principle of operation, together with the device which it now consider to be the best embodiment thereof, ll desire to have it understood that the device shown is merely illustrative and that such changes may be made when desired as fall within the scope of the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention, ll claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent:

1.. A transmission comprising a driven element having vanes, a driving element having pivoted blades, cranks on the blades, a plurality of connectors uniting the blades in groups, and means for adjusting the position of the connectors to vary the pitch of the blades.

2. A transmission comprising a driven element having vanes, a driving elementhaving pivoted blades, cranks on the blades, a plurality of connectors uniting the blades in groups, rotatable shafts movable with and movable independently of the connectors for adjusting the position of the latter to change the pitch of the blades, and means for actuating the shafts.

3, A transmission comprising a driven element having vanes, a driving element having pivoted blades, cranksi'on the blades, a plurality of connectors uniting the blades in groups, rotatableshafts movable with and movable independently of the connectors for adjusting the position of the latter to change the pitch of the blades, an axially movable spider operatively connected with the shafts to rotate the same, and means for actuating the spider,

l. A hydraulic transmission comprising a casing rotatably mounted and having vanes, an impeller mounted in the casing and having adjustable blades, a device rotatable with the impeller and operatively connected with the blades for changing the pitch thereof, means movable axially of the impeller for adjusting the device in one direction, spring means for moving the device in the opposite shafts carried on the impeller and having spiral threads engaged with the nuts and also operatively connected With the blades for adjusting the same.

5. A transmission comprising a rotatably mounted casing having vanes, a shaft connected with the casing, a member axially slidable on the shaft, a member slidable in the shaft and connected with the first-mentioned member, a driving shaft in the casing, a member engagin the second-mentioned member and move le axially thereby, a spider operatively connected with the third-mentioned member to slide axially of the drivin shaft and to rotate therewith, a spring yie dingly opposing the movement of the spider in one direction, pivoted blades carried by the driving shaft, nuts carried by the spider, shafts having spiral threads engaging the nuts, cranks on the shafts, connectors operatively connected with the cranks, cranks on the blades, and connections between a plurality of blade cranks and each connector.

6. A hydraulic transmission comprising a driven element in the form of a casing having three sets of vanes on the inner surface of its peripheral Wall, one set of vanes being disposed between the other two sets and in staggered relation thereto, and an impeller rotatably mounted in the casing to operate on the vanes through a hydraulic medium.

WILBUR LLOYD ROUNDS. 

